May 22, 2008

Farm Bill snafu: one more time until veto override

The Farm Bill fandango will have to be repeated, since the official parchment "enrolled" version of the legislation sent to the President (and vetoed) was missing a title. According to CQ Politics:

The error in the enrolled version sent
to the White House was traced to an electronic printing machine used to
print the parchment copy of the bill.

[Steny] Hoyer said the
White House did not catch the omission because administration officials
looked at the printed conference report, rather than the single copy of
the enrolled bill printed on parchment.

House Parliamentarian John Sullivan
advised lawmakers in both parties that, based on Supreme Court
precedents, the flawed enrolled copy of the bill would be regarded as
the text of what Bush had vetoed.

“The courts have ruled that the parchment is the statute,” Hoyer said. “That’s what they look at.”

D'oh. In To Fix Error, House to Vote Again on Farm Bill, the New York Times writes that the House was to vote on an extension to
keep Agriculture Department programs running until June 6. The White House wants a complete do-over, but that's not going to happen.

As expected, President Bush vetoed the Farm Bill on Wednesday, an
effort that effectively repudiated years worth of work for legislators
in both the Democratic and Republican parties — work that ultimately
resulted in overwhelming support for the bill in both the House and
Senate.

Fortunately, Congress is expected to override the president’s
veto, perhaps as soon as today. There are several reasons why such
action should be taken.

“This bill will have a significant impact
on Minnesotans — both rural and urban — as it will keep the critical
safety net intact, expand the use of renewable fuels, establish a
permanent disaster assistance program, invest heavily in nutrition and
food assistance programs, and provide for the largest conservation
investment in farm bill history,” stated Sen. Norm Coleman in a May 15
press release.

A few of many noteworthy details:

l About two-thirds of the $300 billion farm bill is slated for nutritional programs, such as food stamps and emergency food aid.

l Farmers would be paid for weather losses from a new $3.8 billion disaster relief fund.

l
More money from a per-gallon ethanol tax credit for refiners (which was
reduced from 51 cents to 45 cents) will go to cellulosic ethanol.

“(The
bill) includes a significant step toward payment reform, makes the
improvements in the safety net for sugar and dairy producers that I
have advocated for, and invests in landmark renewable energy
initiatives, while providing for the critical nutrition and
conservation programs we need,” Sen. Any Klobuchar said in a statement
Wednesday following Bush’s veto.

“This bill will provide more
flexibility for Minnesota’s farmers, who will be able to plant more
fruits and vegetables, instead of being locked into planting what the
government requires. … This Farm Bill includes a section I added which
will make it easier for southeastern Minnesota’s organic producers to
participate in the Farm Bill’s conservation programs,” added Rep. Tim
Walz, speaking to the media last week.

Our lawmakers see the importance of this new Farm Bill legislation. It’s too bad the president doesn’t.